Memento Mori Chapter Four

When next he woke, it was almost a repeat of the night before. He was disoriented and thought he’d had a strange dream. The difference was that the sun was shining and someone was banging on his door.

He stumbled his way over and threw it open. He was met with the face of Jacob Black. “Why are you here this early?

The other man snorted. “Early? ‘Tis mid-morning. Are you just out of bed?”

“I had a rough night.” Edward rubbed his hands over his face in an attempt to wake up.

“You haven't taken to drinking, have you?” Jacob looked closely at him, inspecting him for bloodshot eyes. If he was drinking, maybe it would be even easier to obtain the property he coveted than he’d initially thought.

“No.” Edward glared at Jacob, who he knew wanted his land desperately. “Why are you here?”

“To ask if you’ve reconsidered my offer. Surely the money is more valuable than the land you’ll have to work alone.”

“It’s been in my family for generations, Black. I’m not interested in giving it up. I’ve told you and anyone else that’s asked, and yet you all keep bothering me.”

“Just think—” Jacob stopped speaking. There were marks on Masen’s neck. “What is that?” he asked as he pointed at the angry black dots that carried crimson streaks away from them like an infection.

“It’s none of your business.” Edward put his hand up to cover the spot the vampire drank from the night before.

“It’s my business if I think you’re unfit to operate a farm. I’ll get you declared incompetent and then I’ll have your land for pennies. What kind of cult are you involved in, Masen?”

“I knew you were faking the charm, Black. Get off my property. I’ll greet you with my shotgun the next time you come knocking, so you might as well stay gone.” He shut the door in Jacob’s face but could hear him shouting from the other side of the wall.

“Just you wait! I’ll be back with the mayor and a judge, and I’ll have you in the looney bin before the week is done!”

Edward sighed and rested his forehead on the wood-slat wall. Once he could no longer hear the man he went outside to use the outhouse before returning to gather something suitable for breakfast. He was in more trouble now and he didn't even know how it had come about. All he wanted was to live a quiet life, and instead, he was surrounded by difficulty. He wondered where the succubus was at this time of the day. He knew next to nothing about them, always considering them myths, but he was fairly certain they couldn't come out in the daylight.

He went out to the field after breaking his fast but he tired easily. He felt lethargic, like he was coming down with an ailment. He didn't clear nearly as much of the land as he’d planned in order to keep on track. He went in at the sun’s zenith and fell face first onto his bed. He was utterly exhausted.

He realized he must have fallen asleep when he jolted at the sound of the door opening. He wanted to run as far as he could, or, at the very least, have the chance to use his only weapon, but it was broken now and he was too fearful to move.

He watched her come inside in slow, deliberate movements. “You couldn't run from me even if you tried. I’m faster.”

She appeared by his bed to prove her point. She’d moved so fast he didn't even register it. He cowered against the wall, hoping she wouldn’t hurt him this time.

“I told you that the only way to prevent me from hurting you is to let me make you a vampire.”

“I don't want to be like you! I thought I made that clear. Why won’t you leave me be?” His body had gone feverish with the agony of anticipation.

“I can’t. You and your blood calls to me irresistibly. I can smell you and taste you even when I’m far away. I crave you day and night.”

She ran a fingernail over his cheek and he trembled, knowing she would soon bite him. “You left me alone all day today. You can just do whatever kept you occupied and leave me be.”

“It's the sun. I can’t go out in the sun without weakening severely. It causes burns that take days to heal. After I drink from you I have to leave you to let you recuperate and make more blood. I run as far as I can to avoid coming back and attacking you. Once the sun comes out, I must hide in the shadows.”

She had moved on to caressing him with a fingertip. “Why me?” he choked out.

She leaned so close he smelled her breath as she exhaled on his neck. “I’ve told you. You are what I crave. You are my singer.”

She bit down and he cried out, trying to claw at the steel arms that held him to her. It was useless. She was made of stone, an impenetrable granite that he was helpless to do anything about. The torpidness came over him in great waves, blanketing his mind until everything went dark. His very last thought was that she was going to kill him.

Isabella wasn't trying to kill him, but she knew she would before much longer. Her choices were to change him against his will—risking him running off once he was reborn, which would cause her to chase him for the rest of eternity—or to drink him dry. As he stopped struggling, she lowered him to the mattress and left him to recover. She’d never bothered to think twice about taking a life.